In a replay of the 2005 and 2006 Grand Finals, today's AFL Mackay Manpower CQ Forklifts Grand Final between the North Mackay Saints and Whitsunday Sea-Eagles is set to be another intriguing contest, which could go right down to the wire.
Harrup Park Stadium will be the venue for today's clash, where triple premiers Whitsunday will be looking for their fourth Grand Final win on the trot. It has not been since 1992 that Bakers Creek won four consecutive flags.
Whitsunday are the only team to defeat North Mackay this season, and have an uncanny knack of upsetting even the best laid plans, as they proved in last year's decider.
The Sea-Eagles have undergone a re-building process, having lost more than half of their 2006 premiership team at the commencement of the 2007 season. Whitsunday have regrouped well, and continue to show their worth in the competition, particularly in recent weeks with a strong performance in last week's Preliminary Final against Mackay City.
North Mackay will be looking to excise the demons of last year's Grand Final loss, and have approached this season with a different attitude.
Saints coach, Darren Gwynne conveyed a simple game plan to his team at training on Thursday night - let Whitsunday match our game, not the reverse. This approach has served North Mackay well this season, and will set up a tactical battle between opposing coaches.
An injury cloud does hover over the Saints line-up, with a key player battling a calf injury in the lead-up to the match. Although named in the starting line-up, he will undergo a fitness test prior to the match to determine whether he will take part in the match.
North Mackay has easily been the best team during the season, with several outstanding players and will justifiably start as favourites, however this year has closely mirrored last season, and last season proved nothing is certain until the final siren sounds.
Whitsunday always bring with them a strong and parochial support base, but are sure to be drowned out by significant home town advantage of North Mackay, who are fielding teams in all five matches on the day. This could prove to be their Achilles heal, limiting some selection options for the lower grades.
Senior game starts at 3:00pm
The as yet unbeaten Mackay City Hawks Reserves team were brought to their knees two weeks ago by North Mackay, and will this week have a point to prove against their traditional rivals.
The Hawks were jumped last time by the Saints, but regrouped well last weekend against the Swans to win through to today's Grand Final. The Hawks will have the added advantage of the availability of some of their fringe senior players, who will be available to bolster their ranks.
The Saints have had the luxury of a week off, and do have the luxury of having more players than positions, being the mark of a strong club.
Matches between these two sides are always keenly contested, with plenty of passion on display. The Hawks did not finish on top of the ladder by chance, with a close result expected.
Reserves game starts at 1:00pm.
Last Modified on 10/01/2009 18:13